Something about mountains.

Something that helps me feel less stressed out and like I'm about to die is talking to my friends about things that we want to do after college. Also, hearing that I'm not the only one who feels like their life is a mess with no direction comforts me. One of my best friends and I had such a conversation last night and I remembered this:

One thing that I forgot to add to my list of things I want to do (in this blog post; "In my lifetime...") is hiking the Appalachian Trail. From Georgia to Maine. The whole thing. And not in quick snatches of time, doing little bits of the trail every once in a while; I want to disappear from society for 4-6 months and hike the whole damn thing.

I feel like people wouldn't get this impression from looking at me, but I love hiking. And I don't mean just like strolling through the woods on a nice, easy sloping trail; I like hiking up mountains, scrambling up near-vertical faces, using ladders and metal rungs to climb higher and higher, walking along a sheer drop, above the treeline.

The best feeling when hiking up a long, steep trail is arriving at the top, with the world at your feet, nothing but clouds and the tips of other mountains around you. It's purely exhilarating. No matter how much you cursed yourself for choosing to hike a trail that seemed short (only a little more than a mile) but turned out to be a mile CLIMB with few to no flat stretches, once you reach the top, you forget the difficulties you faced in getting there and just appreciate the fact that you have gotten there.

My dad, cousin, and brother hiking in Maine.

Views don't get much better than this.

In my lifetime...

I just watched this video here, and it kind of inspired me to think of some things that I want to accomplish in my lifetime.

Here we go:

1. Write a book and actually finish it.

2. Get said book published.

3. Backpack through Europe.

4. Study in another country (preferably England).

5. Live somewhere that is not New Jersey.

6. Drive across the country.

7. Fall in love.

8. Gain 100 followers on this blog.

9. Graduate from college.

10. Meet J.K. Rowling.

I realize that some of these might take time and will be somewhat difficult to achieve, but these are just ten things I want to do before I die. And I will make them happen. Don't doubt me.

Time.

"It is the unknown we fear when we look upon death and darkness, nothing more."

Albus Dumbledore

I am obsessed with time. I'm constantly checking it, thinking about it, wondering if I'll ever have enough. I'm always afraid I'll run out of time before I have the chance to do amazing things with my life. I'm afraid I won't have enough time to see all of the world. I'm afraid of dying, and of growing old, and of missing out on living life.

And then I realize that by sitting and thinking and worry about missing out on life, I am missing out on life. Then I just get more anxious. If I could just run out the door this instant and leave everything behind and spend the rest of my life wandering into every corner of the Earth and experiencing everything it has to offer, I would.